Verbal Behavior for Children with Autism in a Post-Skinnerian World
Symposium 1162
February 26th, 2016
Santa Clara Convention Center, Santa Clara, CA
ABSTRACT:
Behavior analytic approaches to language learning have come a long way in the nearly 60 years since the publication of The Analysis of Verbal Behavior. From the direct instruction of basic psycholinguistic skills and elementary verbal operants to the development complex language and cognitive skills through derived relational responding, applied behavior analysis has continued to develop over the years both conceptually and technologically. While providing an exciting new array of training procedures for enhancing language instructions, instructional methods based on post-Skinnerian conceptualizations of language have been slow to be adopted by practicing behavior analysts. The first piece in this symposium aims to provide an overview of the traditional and contemporary behavior analytic approaches to language learning by providing a review the currently available assessment and curriculum protocols rooted in these behavior analytic frameworks, by discussing the contributions made by our discipline and by drawing attention to the gaps that still remain. The second presentation will focus on practical applications of equivalence theory in teaching language skills such as geometry, geography, and category formation. Instruction of complex language skills, such as deictic relations, inclusion through hierarchical frames, and temporal reasoning, will be discussed in the third presentation on procedures derived from relational frame theory. In closing, discussion will be provided on the continuing importance for our field to refine, expand, and include new procedures into our conceptual foundations and technological delivery of language acquisition therapies.
CHAIR AND DISCUSSANT:
Chair: JACOB H. DAAR (jacobdaar@gmail.com)
Affiliation: Southern Illinois University, Carbondale
Discussant: JONATHAN TARBOX (jtarbox@firststepsforkids.com)
Affiliation: Firststeps for Kids, Inc